A lucky few of our number are enjoying PAX East, with its video game previews and general geek nirvana. The rest of us poor slobs will be crying in our favorite beverages, sure, but we'll still enjoy a game or two to cheer us up.
We've been following the development of Aragorn's Quest pretty closely. A kid friendly co-op brawler set in Middle Earth? Yes please. So far the game has been delayed from a Fall 2009 release to Spring 2010. It appears we have to wait a bit longer, as it has been delayed once more, this time to Fall 2010. But there is a bit of good news to go with the bad.
Microsoft has announced an that April 6th is the day for the next Xbox 360 Dashboard update, and while we don't know what other features it will include, we do know it'll include the ability to use USB devices for storage, a first for the console.
There's very few details on the upcoming Ghost Recon title called Future Soldier, but what we do know is the co-op game is going to kick some major ass - at least if it's any where near as awesome as this live action teaser trailer that was released.
Og, Blizzard, we love your level of support. Diablo 2, released two full Presidents ago, has been patched yet again. The biggest change is oen of the most often requested by fans: a free respec, allowing characters to choose new skills without starting a new character. Bug fixes and the like aren't quite as exciting, but the improved options for playing on modern widescreen monitors and higher resolutions are certainly appreciated. Asa always, Blizzard's long-term commitment to their games is second to none. Now, about that sequel...
Volition - creator of Saints Row 2 - spilled the beans on just how difficult crafting an open-world co-op game can be. Doing so without implementing tethers (like in Mercenaries 2: World in Flames) is apparently more of a technical achievement than most of us realized, according to designer David Bowring. "Pain and suffering" were the words David used to describe the process, but followed shortly by "gratifying". In fact, he went so far as to claim that a game's shelf life is extended by cooperative play, thanks to the inherently social nature of co-op.
iPhone-exclusive shooter Eliminate received an update recently, and beyond just adding a co-op mode to the competitive versus game, the update is completely free.
Last year we posted a review for EA Sports Active: Personal Trainer, a Nintendo Wii fitness title that worked surprisingly well and had some mediocre co-op tacked on. It's not a bad game, really - it just snazzes up the activities that we generally either avoid...or pay good money for better effectiveness.
In addition to providing us with a guided tour of Tragnarion Studio's upcoming four player co-op title, The Scourge Project, Game Director Omar Salleh allowed us to pick his brain some. We discovered that, like many of us, he's just looking for a quality co-op experience.
It's been sometime since we announced that Doom 2 would hit Xbox Live Arcade. Well over half a year in fact. But all is not forgotten for the game, as Destructoid managed to hit up Bethesda about the game.
Yeah, yeah, I'm like a broken record. My last entry for this column was for the same game, but what can you do? I love super heroes, I love co-op, and I usually game with my 8 year old son, so Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 is getting lots of playtime in our house. We are nearly at the end of our second replay, and I've been focusing on unlocking alternate costumes for many different characters. The costumes are like the characters themselves: some are very nice, but some totally suck. I'll let you know which are which.
This Friday kicks off the first ever PAX East Expo. The three day convention in Boston will be full of the biggest and baddest upcoming games as well as plenty of general geek goodness. The Co-Opticrew will be on hand to bring you guys coverage straight from the show floor.
